What is bronchitis, and when would you need to use inhalers if you've never needed inhalers before?

You might need them: Bronchitis is a non specific inflammation of the upper airways. It can be caused by bacteria, viruses and allergies among other causes. An antibiotic is usually used to treat a bacterial infection of the airways and in addition sometimes a short-acting beta 2 agonist like albuterol is used to open back up airways that have become constricted due to the inflammation.

Bronchitis: It is an inflammation the lining of your bronchial tubes. "acute" vs "chronic" labels are important for treatment. Acute bronchitis develops afer a cold virus and lasts a few days with persistent cough for weeks. Chronic bronchitis is more serious with constant inflammation perhaps assoc. With smoking/copd. Treatment with inhalers may help inflammation/narrowing of lining of inflammed lungs.

Type?...: There are 2 types of bronchitis: acute and chronic. In acute bronchitis, there is infection of the airways. This can lead to bronchospasm and airway inflammation which are both treated with inhalers until the infection resolves completely. Chronic bronchitis is a form of COPD usually caused by smoking. These patients are often prescribed inhalers for bronchospasm and airway inflammation as well.